So... you wanna be a wine blogger, eh? [ Editor's note: sorry, did not mean to sound Canadian there...].

Well, I'm here to tell ya NOT to do it.

Now, before you flame me with nasty e-mails and comments, please bear in mind that I will be following up this post next week with three reasons why you should be a wine blogger. But I can't in good conscience do that before I tell you what you're really up against if you want to wine blog.

Any type of blogging worth its salt is going to require genuine commitment from you. It will also require that your writing not totally stink. But these are not the reasons why you should think twice (or thrice, or... uhm... whatever comes after thrice) about starting up a wine blog.

Let me clue you in on the real scoop of wine blogging - the gritty reality behind the glitz, the glamor, the fortune, the fame...

1) There is no glitz, fortune or fame in wine blogging.Sorry to have to break this to ya, but there's no glitz, glamor, fortune or fame when it comes to wine blogging. You will NOT be quitting your day job. You will NOT be raking in the bucks from ad revenue. You will NOT be interviewed on CNN to expound on your wine smarties. Blogging revenue is usually tied directly to traffic. Who gets the most traffic in the on-line world? Social networks, porn, and productivity blogs (basically in that order). Wine blogging is NOT in the top three. It's probably not even in the top 300 - and it probably never will be.

2) Two's company, Three's a crowd, and 600 is a Wine Blogging Community.Guess what? You're not the only wine blogger out there. You are in very good company. According to Alder at Vinography.com (arguably the granddaddy of all wine blogging), there are now over 600 wine bloggers. At least 200 of those are in the U.S. alone. It's not just a crowded field - it's a REALLY crowded field. And all of those bloggers are competing in some way, shape, or form for a similar reader pool as you. Doh! Even better - most of them probably know all the tricks of the trade in blogging to maximize their search engine karma, technorati authority, google page rank, etc., etc., etc. Double Doh! Which leads me to our next reason not to wine blog...

What you get out of wine blogging will depend primarily on what you put into it. In that sense, it's a relationship between you and your blogging.

3) You need to be original from day one.To wine blog, you need to offer something original to the community of 600+ and their potential readers. This will NOT be easy to do in a field of 600+ and their potential readers. In fact, it will be really, really, really difficult. And you won't have much time to do it, either. Potential readers will decide in a matter of seconds whether or not your blog is worth reading ever again. They can do this because if they don't like yours they can very quickly try another one of the 600+. Standing out is essential, and it's not easy to do. Have fun!

It may not seem like it from the timbre of this post, but personally I don't think that any of the above should stop you from wine blogging if you're really passionate about it. What you get out of wine blogging (or any blogging, for that matter) will depend primarily on what you put into it. In that sense, it's a relationship between you and your blogging.

More on that next week. In the meantime, have a safe and wine-filled weekend.

I will add another reason not to. It's very hard to commit to writing on a regular basis. And sometimes there seems to be nothing to write about. Or it's all been said, as you point out. Hence the fall-off of some really good blogs.

Dude it takes a lot of courage to put out a message that explains why you should not exist. Looking forward to our trip up north for the 2 volume wine list....and 50 wine by the glass list. Rebecca...I see you as our designated driver. Cheers!

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